The American Numismatic Association is accepting papers on “Numismatics in its Relationship to World’s Fairs and Expositions” from authors and researchers who would like to be a part of the Maynard Sundman Littleton Coin Company Lecture Series.

Selected authors will be asked to deliver presentations in the Aug. 14 symposium at the ANA World’s Fair of MoneySM in Chicago. This year marks the 120th anniversary of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and the 70th anniversary of the Century of Progress International Exposition, both held in Chicago.

Selected presenters will receive a $250 honorarium. Submissions, which are due April 5, should consist of a lecture summary that is 500 words or less. Each summary should contain an introduction, a brief discussion of the subject, sources and research method.

Priority is given to papers that emphasize areas of new research and scholarship.

A panel will review submissions and choose talks based on originality, persuasiveness and relevance to the symposium topic. Presenters will be notified by April 26, 2013.

Proceedings from the symposium will be published on the American Numismatic Association website (www.money.org). Presenters must provide an electronic copy and printout of their papers prior to the symposium.

Symposium admission is free and open to all attendees of the ANA World’s Fair of Money. For more information on the World’s Fair of Money, go to www.worldsfairofmoney.com/Sundman.

]]>http://coinagemag.com/wanted-papers-on-worlds-fairs/feed/1COINage Kids: January 2013http://coinagemag.com/coinage-kids-january-2013/
http://coinagemag.com/coinage-kids-january-2013/#commentsMon, 24 Dec 2012 20:49:05 +0000http://coinagemag.com/?p=1972Print out and complete the word search. Follow the rest of the instructions and send it in for a chance to win a prize in our monthly drawing. Word search
]]>http://coinagemag.com/coinage-kids-january-2013/feed/0My Two Cents’ Worth: A Pocketful of Wryhttp://coinagemag.com/my-two-cents-worth-a-pocketful-of-wry/
http://coinagemag.com/my-two-cents-worth-a-pocketful-of-wry/#commentsThu, 20 Dec 2012 22:35:24 +0000http://coinagemag.com/?p=1957When numismatists speak of “odd and curious” items, they’re referring to Yap stones, Swedish plate money and similarly strange objects that have seen use through the centuries as mediums of exchange.

In this month’s column, the phrase “odd and curious” refers not to offbeat money, but rather to oddball news items dealing with coins or currency.

I hope you’ll indulge me if, in recapping each item, I make some observations that also might be described as odd and curious.
* * *
A pizza purchase in Battle Ground, British Columbia, involved a lot more dough than the clueless buyer realized. According to police in Washington State, the 19-yearold man paid for the pizza, in part, with “an old Liberty quarter” worth thousands of dollars—at its face value of 25 cents.

The coin was part of a collection stolen from a home in Woodland, Washington— allegedly by the pizza buyer and his girlfriend. The homeowner claims the pair stole her coins after being hired for chores around the house.

The man was arrested on suspicion of first-degree theft. Booking of his girlfriend was deferred because she was nine months pregnant. Authorities first became aware of the spending spree when an employee of the pizza parlor called and sought a $1,000 reward for the “Liberty quarter,” which police did not further identify except to say it was worth “$1,100 to $18,500.”

The hapless perpetrators could have avoided all this unpleasantness if they had simply chosen a different kind of fast-food restaurant—say, Subway, Quiznos or Arby’s—and paid their bill with the sandwich-type coins being minted today by Uncle Sam.
* * *
An airport baggage handler has been arrested in the theft of $20,000 in unreleased $100 bills bearing new design features meant to deter counterfeiting.

An FBI agent said the C-notes were sto-len from cargo on a plane after it arrived from Dallas at Philadelphia International Airport. The bills were part of a shipment bound for a Federal Reserve facility in East Rutherford, New Jersey. A courier service transporting the shipment from the airport to East Rutherford reported that the money’s container had been opened—and upon investigation, federal officials discovered that some of it was missing.

The bills incorporate new, hard-toduplicate design elements, including a “disappearing” Liberty Bell in a coppercolored inkwell and a bright blue, threedimensional security ribbon.

The revamped “Benjamins” originally were scheduled to debut in February 2011, but the BEP suspended their release indefinitely when some of the bills emerged from initial production runs with paper creases. Now, with a 2013 release date being planned, a new wrinkle has developed:

The bills contain plenty of safeguards against counterfeiting—but remain as susceptible as ever to common theft.
* * *
Among the oddest and most curious forms of money to surface in recent months was a set of special coins issued by New Zealand to coincide with the premiere of “The Hobbit,” a new movie that revisits characters from the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

The coins reflect the whimsy of author J.R.R. Tolkien’s sprawling fantasy about an imagined land called Middle Earth. They portray major characters from the “Hobbit” book and movie and bear the inscription “New Zealand/Middle Earth” in both English and “Dwarvish.”

A group of three one-ounce gold coins was offered by New Zealand’s official marketing firm for $10,995. With gold worth roughly $1,700 an ounce, each was being marketed for more than twice its intrinsic value. Then again, money is no object for some coin buyers. And if enough people purchase “Hobbit” coins, they might even form a Middle Earth version of the Token and Medal Society.

Prizes for the October quiz have been sent. We’ve posted the answers here anyway, just in case you were curious.

1. When did Columbus set foot in the New World, and when is his day observed?
October 12, 1492; October 12

2. When did the Age of Exploration begin?
The early 15th century

3. President (Thomas) Jefferson sent a group led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the recently acquired Louisiana Purchase.

4. Do a little more research: Leif Ericson was a Viking. Where was he believed to have been born?
Iceland

5. Which two state quarters pay tribute to the space program?
Ohio and Florida

]]>http://coinagemag.com/october-quiz-answers/feed/0September Quiz Answershttp://coinagemag.com/september-quiz-answers/
http://coinagemag.com/september-quiz-answers/#commentsWed, 19 Oct 2011 20:57:04 +0000http://coinagemag.com/?p=1295None of the entries received for the September quiz were valid. All were close, but none were entirely correct.

The correct answers are posted here.

1) Who is the current U.S. Treasurer?
Rosie Rios

2) How many planes were hijacked, and where did they ultimately crash?
Four (4) planes: Two into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, one crashed into the Pentagon and the fourth in Shanksville, Pennsylvania

3) President Barack Obama signed the National September 11 Memorial & Museum Commemorative Act on August 6, 2010.

4) What does the water on the medal’s reverse symbolize?
Peace and the continuity of life

5) Did anyone who was on the flights survive?
No

6) Who designed and sculpted both sides of the medal?
Front: Designed by Donna Weaver, sculpted by Phebe Hemphill
Back: Designed by Donna Weaver, sculpted by Joseph Menna

]]>http://coinagemag.com/september-quiz-answers/feed/0July Quiz Answershttp://coinagemag.com/july-quiz-answers-2/
http://coinagemag.com/july-quiz-answers-2/#commentsMon, 15 Aug 2011 21:46:59 +0000http://coinagemag.com/?p=1223Here are the answers to July’s quiz about Independence Day and symbols on our coins.

1. The reverse of this classic commemorative bears an accurate likeness of the Liberty Bell.1926 Sesquicentennial of American Independence

2. The portrait of the president on this coin faces right and takes up more than half of the design field.2005 Jefferson nickel

3. If you placed this silver coin’s obverse and reverse side by side, the symbols on this would have their backs to each other.Peace dollar

4. The American flag is the background for another design element on the obverse of this commemorative.1992 clad Olympic half dollar (gymnast)

5. Independence Hall in Philadelphia is the central device on the reverse of this circulating commemorative.1976 Bicentennial half dollar

6. With Liberty on the obverse and the American eagle on the reverse, this coin’s design was later used on a silver bullion coin.Walking Liberty half dollar

7. Designed by Chester Beach, this 1925 coin commemorates two famous battles fought in 1775.1925 Lexington-Concord Sesquicentennial

8. Adolph A. Weinman designed the version of Liberty that appears on this coin. Rumor has it that this coin’s design will be used on a palladium bullion coin.Winged Liberty, “Mercury,” dime

9. The Liberty Bell on the reverse of this coin is superimposed over an image of a cratered moon.1776-1976 Eisenhower dollar

10. A small eagle was placed to the right of the Liberty Bell on this coin’s reverse in order to fulfill legal requirements.Franklin half dollar